At least two large churches in the Swiss city of Zurich will turn off their lights for five to 10 minutes this Wednesday at 11 pm (local time) in solidarity with kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit ,marking the beginning of his fifth year in Hamas captivity.
The move was initiated by several Jewish organizations in Switzerland. The Grossmünster and Fraumünster cathedrals have agreed to cooperate with the Jewish initiative, and the organizers are now waiting for the agreement of the city's oldest church, St. Peter, which has the largest clock face in Europe – with a diameter of 8.7 meters.
Edward M. Rosenstein, president of the Augustin Keller Lodge of the B'nai B'rith organization in Switzerland and one of the move's initiators, told Ynet that Jewish morals were what made Zurich's Jews join the efforts for Shalit's release.
"We want to remind everyone that Gilad has been a prisoner for four years now, and we would also like to raise the Swiss government's awareness to work for his sake. At the designated hour quite a few people will be present in the area, as well as many media outlets."
Rosenstein said he had not encountered any hostile sentiments towards the initiative. "We organized the program at very short notice. We hope to raise the public's awareness for Gilad."